After Amy and John renovated their kitchen two years ago, the only room left in their rowhouse to update was the second floor bathroom, a relic from the 1940s with little storage, mismatched fixtures, dingy tile and a tub that had a tendency to flood the kitchen below. They hired local contractor MW Construction to do the total gut job, resulting in a stunning transformation. Amy and John selected classic fixtures with modern style — a marble vanity, chrome accents, grey and white hexagonal floor tile and white subway tile for the tub and walls. They didn’t gain any extra floor space, but by selecting a larger vanity and medicine cabinet, they have more storage making the room less cluttered and more open. All the tile comes from The Tile Shop. We love the splash of color with the blue stripe and recessed shelf. They extended the tile in the shower all the way up to the ceiling. Thanks Amy and John for sharing your latest home renovation project...

Where can you go to get ideas and inspiration for a home renovation? Just check with your neighbors. While thinking of how they’d like to remodel their rowhouse bathroom, these homeowners took notes during the Del Ray House and Garden Tour, admiring the many creative tiling options in bathrooms around the neighborhood. After much thought, they decided to stay true to the era in which their home was built, but to update the tile and make other improvements. We stopped by to check out the bathroom before it gets its makeover. They say they’ve always hated this “weird pattern” in the floor tile that doesn’t line up with either toilet or sink, but they like the black-and-white theme. It’s become much more of a challenge than they had anticipated to get tilework done the way it looked in 1939. They look forward to choosing a new color for the walls once the room has been rebuilt, after being taken down to its wood laths. An exhaust fan will be...

At first glance, Charles and Brandy’s kitchen seems like it doesn’t need much work — white cabinets, wood floors, built-in shelving, clear sight lines to the living room. Sounds pretty good, right? But upon closer look, you realize there are deeper issues that need to be addressed to make this a more functional space for their family. Here are the before shots of this 1950s Warwick Village rowhouse and a peek at what’s planned in the weeks to come. First on their wish list is more counter space. Right now, I’d guess there’s about 24 inches on either side of the sink and when you add a coffee maker, knife block or any other kitchen equipment, prep space starts to disappear. To remedy this, they plan to move the stove to a new peninsula between the kitchen and living room, creating a full wall of counter space along the front wall. More important, replacing the stove is actually a safety issue. It’s been months since they’ve been able to...

A few weeks ago, we shared the stunning after photos of Christina and Brad’s rowhouse kitchen remodel. The kitchen, however, is only part of this story. Instead of renovating just their kitchen, they used this opportunity to get all their home renovations done in one fell swoop. Today, we’re back to show you how they transformed their second floor bathroom and basement. Here was the second floor bathroom when we first toured the house earlier this year. It was ready for a complete gut job. During demolition of the kitchen (right below the bathroom), they received the unsettling news from their contractor that the bathroom’s floor joists weren’t completely holding up the second floor. Their contractor, MW Construction, immediately rectified the situation to ensure the new bathroom wouldn’t come crashing through to their fabulous new kitchen. And here is the brand new bathroom. We absolutely LOVE the choice of classic floor and bath tile and the crisp and clean white and black color palette. All tile comes from The...

Earlier this year, we took you on a tour of Christina and Brad’s Del Ray rowhouse, just weeks before construction on a 3-floor renovation was to begin. Now, three months later, we’re back to show you the reveal of one of the completed projects, their gorgeous new kitchen. To recap, here was the kitchen before work started. It was an original Del Ray galley, closed off from the main living area with very little usable space. What the house did have, however, was a small addition off the back used for kitchen storage. But even with the addition, the kitchen wasn’t functional. Christina and Brad hired MW Construction to do what other Del Ray homeowners have done, tear down the wall between the kitchen and the dining room, add more counter and cabinet space and modernize the look of the kitchen. Christina sent me these photos of the construction underway. It was a complete gut job. The view of the closed-off kitchen from the dining room: Former location of...

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DIY Del Ray is about enjoying your home, your family and your neighborhood. Follow along as we talk about interior design, unique storage solutions, living with kids, home improvement and craft projects, entertaining and more.